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New ZealandFlavors · Saint-Émilion
Almond biscuit made with sugar and egg white, baked in small discs on paper, without filling. Tradition attributes the recipe to the Ursuline nuns who lived in Saint-Émilion from 1620; it is the sweet specialty of the wine village.
Traditional sweet from Saint-Émilion, Nova Aquitânia
Also known as: macaron de Saint-Emilion
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Macaron de Saint-Émilion — Saint-Émilion, France
The Saint-Émilion macaron is a simple biscuit made from ground almonds, sugar and egg whites. The batter is piped into small discs on sheets of paper and baked until the surface is lightly cracked and the interior is soft. Unlike the Parisian macaron, it has no filling or colors.
Tradition links the recipe to the Ursulines, an order of nuns who settled in Saint-Émilion in 1620 and ran a school for poor girls. During the Revolution the order was banned and its property sold. Legend says one of the sisters, left without means, offered the recipe in exchange for shelter and food, and the secret then passed to local families. Only the convent’s foundations remain, and they can be visited.
In the 19th century the biscuit gained fame beyond the town and was served with the region’s wines at the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris. The houses that made it multiplied in the medieval centre.
The macaron is sold in boxes, still stuck to the paper it was baked on, and is peeled off when eaten.
Saint-Émilion , Nova Aquitânia
Sweet specialty of the village, with a recipe attributed to the Ursulines who settled there in 1620.
Ground almonds, sugar and egg whites.
Peeled off the paper when eaten, with coffee, tea or a glass of sweet wine. It is also taken as a souvenir of the village.
All year; very commonly bought by visitors to Saint-Émilion.
Your questions
The Saint-Émilion version is a simple almond biscuit of sugar and egg white, baked as discs on paper, without filling or color. The Parisian has two smooth colored shells with a filling.
Tradition attributes the recipe to the Ursuline nuns who lived in the village from 1620. According to legend, the recipe passed to local families after the Revolution.
Only the convent’s foundations remain, which are part of the village’s monuments.
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